A Certified Challmark Classic: A Book Review of The Hanukkah Romance The Matzah Ball

Looking for your new favorite Hanukkah gift? For any reader obsessed with cheesy rom-coms, The Matzah Ball may be your perfect present. Though the phrase “matzah ball” may make you think of your favorite Passover delicacy, this time around it’s all about the magic of Hanukkah.

Written by author Jean Meltzer, The Matzah Ball has everything you need to fall in love this holiday season: a dual-perspective Jewish romance, adorably awkward characters brimming with wit, and references that will make those long years of Hebrew school totally worth it. While it may be powdered with the occasional cliche, just like a jelly donut this book is certified sweet.

It all starts with a dark secret before the eight days of lights: our Jewish female protagonist loves Christmas. While some may see this as less of a horrifying revelation and more of the American Jewish norm, Rachel’s love of the holiday isn’t just about blasting “All I Want For Christmas is You” in her car (because let's be real, who among us Jews can resist Mariah Carey’s whistle notes?). This obsession of hers is something else entirely: Rachel’s a full-time Christmas novelist with an overflowing collection of 237 miniature Santas. As the daughter of a well-known rabbi, Rachel hides her Christmas obsession from everyone like it’s the afikomen. She almost gets away with it too – until one day, her literary agent asks her to stop writing about mistletoe and start writing about menorahs. 

In the quest to find inspiration for her very first Hanukkah novel, Rachel ends up reconnecting with an old flame from her Jewish summer camp. To those worried about the snowstorm of Christmas-related content, you’ll be happy to know her love interest’s name is Jacob Greenberg, which is the most classic Jewish name ever heard (for any non-Jews reading this, this is basically our version of John Smith right here). When they were young teens at summer camp, Rachel and Jacob were enemies then lovers then enemies again, pranking each other endlessly until their relationship became more acidic than sour cream on latkes. 

Now, over a decade later, Jacob is planning a high-end Hanukkah party called the Matzah Ball. He’s traveled all the way from Paris to New York City to convince Rachel’s famous rabbi father to join. When Jacob takes part in Shabbat dinner in an effort to win the rabbi over, he finds Rachel sitting right across from him. Can a great miracle happen here?   

With plenty of chuckles and heartwarming scenes, The Matzah Ball is the kind of book you can easily breeze through in under a day. Though at times the eye-rolling moments feel like an eternity (I kid you not, one of the characters unironically said “Let’s put Judaism on fleek!”), this book also presents a surprising amount of depth. Rachel has myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), a long-term illness often colloquially referred to as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. This can transform daily tasks into difficult endeavors and we witness the tolls it has on Rachel throughout this book. Author Jean Meltzer has ME in real life and you could tell how meaningful it was for her to portray Rachel’s journey. 

Conversations on Jewish values were also beautifully depicted in this novel. Though I’ll admit the emphasis on Christmas at first threw me off when reading, I quickly discovered that this book is a Jewish story through and through. From discussions of delicious rugelach to those on finding your bashert, this novel is a celebration of what makes the Jewish faith special in a world where it can often be drowned out. Just like the tiny half-aisle of Hanukkah decor at Target, we may appear small but our pride in our heritage makes us as mighty as the Maccabees.   

Move over Hallmark Christmas movies – in true Jewish fashion, it’s time to bring in the chet sound in front and celebrate an all-new Challmark classic.